Gingersnap Blog

Gingersnap Hair is a creative space where beauty magic lights up the room. Gingersnap Blog is where you can connect with me in a different way with insights, technique videos & behind the scenes bits and bobs.

Fresh from Instagram

Long time no blog! It’s been a wild fall season, full of travel and continuing education.

I just returned home from my final hair training of the year, and have big bright plans for 2019! If you’re not following my current work on Instagram, head over there by clicking here. I occasionally update using the story feature, and it’s getting exciting with some changes that are coming up.

2019 will mark Gingersnap Hair’s 4th birthday! With that, I will be relocating my salon to the Kirkland/Juanita/Bothell area. I will be updating everything to reflect my change of address once we get through the holiday season.

I am SO EXCITED to share what I’m up to with this new chapter in my business. With refocusing to being an extensions-exclusive salon, my new space is going to be magical to be in. Bonus? I can now serve wine :)

More on that later, but in the meantime here are a handful of lovely blondes created with the help of some hand-tied NBR hair extensions. There is no better way to add fullness, length and COLOR to your hair than with this method.

Alexa wearing two rows of hand-tied extensions in a soft blonde ombre

Ally showing the world what you can now do while wearing hair extensions: BRAIDS!

Danielle with some gorgeous 20” hair in a dimensional blonde ombre

Back to your regularly-scheduled blog updates, starting now! Ready to learn more about what NBR can do to up your hair game? Want to know if it’s the right fit for you? Find more info and start your consultation here.

Michele has been a big part of Gingersnap for quite awhile now- I first met her when she was referred in by another client of mine, and quickly became a big, bright energy in the salon. She even offered to help me out with my wedding day! Her decorating and coordinating skills blew me away- and I still recommend her to friends and clients who need help with events.

We've added a few extensions to her already-long hair since our hair journey started a few years back and I was over the moon to get to share the new extensions method I'd just discovered with her. As a client with hair on the fine side, it could be a challenge to find the right solution for daily wear. Our criteria are as follows: must look good (duh!), must be able to go into a high bun and topknot (tough one, but we always found a way somehow), and must be easy to take care of with an active lifestyle. We made do with tape extensions for a couple of years, but those could present a bit of a challenge in the updo & hideability departments.

She was definitely a bit of a skeptic when I told her I had a new jam for her- but lucky for me, she was game and trusted the process. I removed her tape-ins before shooting the before photo you see below, and then brightened up her natural hair with some babylights and a nice medium-blonde colormelt. After custom coloring a few pieces of 18" hand-tied hair to match her natural, I installed it in one row + a mini row, cutting and blending to match. Check out her GORGEOUS before & after!

Before & after 1 row + a mini row of 18" NBR

Goes to show you don't need a ton of extra hair, but that bit of fill and extra density makes a magical difference. Her new Natural Beaded Rows extensions hit all of our criteria- they go up, they go down, they hide PERFECTLY and air dry in beautiful waves with minimal styling required.

Welcome to the Gingersnap Blog! I'm really pleased to be getting this started and have so much to share. As I shift my focus in my business I've decided to create more of a presence outside of the salon.

Things you'll find here: tutorials for easy-to-repeat techniques in hair and beauty. Information about how to use and curate product at home. Behind the scenes insights into haircolor, styling, and extensions. Inspiration, both seasonal and as the wind blows.

Love of beauty is taste. The creation of beauty is art.

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

At heart, I'm an educator on one side and an artist on the other. Finding a new path within the beauty industry that really plays to my love of detail, craft and education has me so excited!

One thing I would really like to see happen within the blog is collaboration. I love to find a hot topic amongst my clients for the week and consolidate that into useful info for people. Now that I'm directing my focus beyond the salon and my daily work behind the chair, I want to hear from YOU.

What do you want to know? Is there a problem or frustration you're experiencing with your hair? Something you're curious about? Tell me here. I would love to workshop through your issue.

Today I wanted to share something I'm really proud of.

I've been giving my clients hair extensions for years- from glued-in wefts (yes, YIKES! Early days!) to halos, tape-ins, clip-ins and custom-cut wigs. I started working seriously with long-wear extensions about four years ago with tape-ins, which work great for what they are (you can create dramatic change, add color, and they are wearable for about six weeks with minimal damage) and I was able to really create wonderful change for my clients.

I started learning that customizing color for this hair took the service from "meh" to actually very lovely and convincing. I've had many clients commit fully to adding length and fullness using extensions, and I even wore a halo AND a fall for my own wedding!

Julie is a long-time client of mine. We've given her a wide range of colors and styles with color and extensions- from platinum-vanilla blonde to natural balayaged blend, and then finally to beautiful copper blondes. She has loved wearing extensions for length and mermaid-y fullness as her natural hair can grow quite long, but hangs pretty flat and thins out around the ends.

I had the opportunity to remove her tape-in extensions and give her the Natural Beaded Rows experience. The overall effect went from "hmm, pretty" to "OMG, your hair is INCREDIBLE" and actually left me stunned when we both looked at her hair with her custom-colored NBR in.

Having the knowledge and skills now to help get my clients to this state of confidence, gorgeousness and a little extra bounce in their step is what it's all about for me. It's safe to say I've found my calling! Check out how stunning Julie's new hair looks:

Julie, before NBR (with fresh color) & after 2 full rows of NBR

Julie's new extensions don't use heat, glue or excessive points of contact, so the impact on her own hair is minimal to nonexistent. She can use any products she would like to- no limitations on conditioner or oils. Even better, the NBR hair has a gorgeous body wave so her hair will look stunning even when simply air-dried.

No evidence! Perfectly blended, no lumps, bumps or bits sticking out. Her hair moves and flows like her natural would.

NBR @ Gingersnap Hair is being offered by consultation. Please click through and fill out an application over here with your information and I will be in touch within 24-48 hours to set up a time to discuss your hair goals! I'll be setting up appointments for new clients beginning in late July and early August.

Beauty comes from within- but sometimes you need a little boost on the outside to get that glow on. Looking forward to hearing from you all!